Mrs. Bonkers vindicated. (President's Message).

Once again, I am busy reading the submissions for the National Teacher of the Year. One of the essays that applicants must write is a response to the question of accountability in the teaching profession. It is most interesting to read the different responses that the State Teachers of the Year give to this question.

While educators at all levels have been told that we are accountable to our students and to our profession, the particular interpretation of "accountability" varies depending upon who is creating the expectations. In the last year, local school districts have been faced with increased demands through the President's Leave No Child Behind imperative. Laws passed by Congress and regulations set forth by the Department of Education focus on test scores and the use of the test scores as measures for funding schools and evaluating teachers.

This focus on test scores touches all of us. The Department of Education has required the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) to set requirements within the new NCATE standards; these call for use of teacher certification test scores to determine national recognition for institutions wishing to receive NCATE accreditation. No longer is this mandate simply a K-12 issue.

I think all educators would agree that we must be accountable for our teaching. Students at all ages learn in different ways, and it behooves us to find the best ways to guide each student to do his or her very best. The candidates for Teacher of the Year make this point over and over again. It is a point that also is recognized by the individuals who wrote the teachers' letters of recommendation, as well as by the candidates themselves. From the kindergarten teacher through teachers of every subject at the high school level, the candidates describe their unique ways to help all the children in their classes learn. They also make the point that their teaching goes beyond their subject matter (no more standing up and lecturing what they know about the subject) to supporting creativity, developing thinking and problem-solving skills, and encouraging individual expression through projects and writing, etc. I suspect that if university faculty were included in the competition, we would find that the very best faculty also employ many methods to help their students become good teacher education majors.

Good teaching, and by extension good learning, moves beyond testing. Are you familiar with the new Dr. Seuss / Prelutsky book, Hooray for Diffendoofer Day? If not, take a look at it and see how Diffendoofer School and Mrs. Bonkers fared in the testing arena. It might brighten your day if you are caught up in the testing demands of your district or state. Even if you aren't, you will enjoy it anyway.

--Nancy L. Quisenberry, President